Before you invest in that expensive blogging course, read this FIRST.

* This post contains affiliates; however, they are courses I RECOMMEND that are cheap. If I wanted to get rich, I would promote the more expensive ones. I've purchased and used all the resources below.

After a desperate need to save money, I accumulated a list of game-changing blogging courses that are CHEAP and even FREE. I'm now gaining traffic AND making affiliate sales.

Blogging is overwhelming. In fact, it's so overwhelming that to succeed it's easy to feel like you MUST invest significantly into your blogging career. Between content creation, SEO optimization, managing and converting social media followings, and monetization, being a blogger requires a full education in well... everything.

BEWARE OF OVERPRICED COURSES

Of course, when you have an ambitious group of people looking for answers, there will always be a profit-seeking entrepreneur around every corner ready to capitalize on the opportunity.

In this instance? Selling overpriced courses.

As you desperately try to build traffic and make money (like we all are), it can seem rather tempting to spill, hundreds, if not thousands of dollars on that course that promises to make you rich. However, I recommend you keep reading before you invest in anything... marketing is a bit of a game, and don't let yourself get played.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for investing in my business. However, I also pride myself in being a solid money manager. Therefore, spending several hundreds of dollars on a single course was going to be out of the question.

I remember receiving my first pitch from a blogger who wanted me to spend over 1,000$ for a marketing course. After hours of reviews, I quickly learned that NOT paying for that course was the best decision I ever made.

However, I still invested in my business, just a little more frugally. I also research EVERYTHING.

I decided to take the money that would have been spent on that ONE course and buy numerous e-books, cheap Udemy courses, AND try out monthly subscription memberships. All for less than a typical self-promoted blogging course.

Best. Decision.Ever.

MY LESSON TO YOU

Here is the deal: I never recommend that you spend THAT much money on a single course from a single person (trust me, I have made mistake elsewhere in life). Their method may have worked for them, but unless you have the exact same niche, the exact same website, and run your business the same way as they do, that course won't be the answer to your prayers. I guarantee that there is always going to be another blogger selling a more successful package at a cheaper price.. somewhere.

So I'm here to provide you with my FAVORITE resources, the ones that were cheap and taught me the tricks to blogging and monetization. I have personally used all of the courses and books mentioned below and recommend you check them out too.

Their method may have worked for them, but unless you have the exact same niche, the exact same website, and run your business the same way as they do, that course won’t be the answer to your prayers

EBOOKS

E-books can be a fantastic way to invest in your blog and your education. A well-crafted e-book will have the same valuable information a course would, but at half the cost. The best part? You can read numerous books for under $100 bucks. That's a wealth of information.

Manual pinning at its finest! I have an entire review of Carly's book that you can read by clicking HERE. This is one of the first courses I recommended because I loved it so, so much. Her book is loaded with how to gain organic traffic from Pinterest for free. It also does a fantastic job breaking down the Pinterest algorithm. The best part is that you don't need to shell out money for Board Booster or Tailwind to get hundreds of thousands of pageviews from Pinterest. You can simply go viral by understanding the platform.

If you have already invested in Tailwind than I highly recommend Caroline's (from Swaddles n' Bottles) e-book called Pinning for Pageviews. This book does a great job explaining the basics of Pinterest and setting up Tailwind to automate your posts AND pin to your group boards without breaking the rules. She even shows you her exact method on how she pins up to 3 MONTHS worth of content in one shot.

Not only is this efficient, but her strategy has gained her over 1 million page views in 6 months. Another affordable recommendation - that can even compliment Carly's!

Master Affiliate Marketing: $32/one-time payment

If you are looking for affiliate marketing, I always recommend taking Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing by Michelle Schroeder first (read more below! However, Michelle's course isn't always in everyone's budget.

A much cheaper alternative to learning affiliates is called Master Affiliate Marketing. It will teach you how to set up affiliate marketing and start profiting off of your blog. Another great budget friendly course for those of you looking to earn money from sites such as Amazon.

COURSES

Ready Set Blog Traffic

This is one of the most affordable, information packed courses I have ever taken. From Google SEO, to utilizing Pinterest, Elna does a fantastic job of going in depth on how to gain blog traffic, and she would know - as she became a full time blogger in 6 months. One of my favorite classes overall!

Udemy is probably my favorite way to learn. I swear that I've learned more in 2 days of Udemy than I did my entire four years of college. Courses can be very targeted, and top ranking courses tend to be taught extremely well: good slideshows, how-to's, easy to understand, and tons of information.

A list of Udemy blogging courses. Credit: Udemy.com

The interesting part? Prices for new signups are usually around $10. After that they try to sell you the courses for significantly more, but don't fall for it!

I've never had to pay more than $12 for a course!

Search for a coupon code (or return to the page without purchasing) this will drop most courses to that $10-$12 mark. Many will also become FREE.

You can get my favorite course: Go Viral on 7 Social Media Platforms by clicking the blue link or the easy-to-access button below. It should be $10 and you will learn more from it than you would dream.

When blogging millionaire Michelle Schroeder offers a course for ONLY $197 (one-time payment - forever accessible) you take it.

Here is what you get:

Everything you need to know about affiliate marketing

Access to arguably the most successful finance bloggers there is

An incredible Facebook group

Facebook promotions

Mentoring (via the Facebook programs)

A chance to join her affiliate program if you like it (which pays for itself)

Last I heard she was making over 50,000 a month alone from affiliate marketing. Don't you want to learn her ways?

Although a bit higher in price than other options; the value you get is the highest. It's one of the BEST courses you could take. I have yet to hear a blogger say otherwise. I've seen courses like this go for $500 - $800, so hers for $197 is a real steal.

A side bonus? You can also do a payment plan of $105 if the one-time payment of $197 is too steep for you.

Even if you aren't sure about taking the course, at least check out HER STORY HERE.

I promise, she will make it well worth your time and money.

WEBINARS: FREE

Have you ever scrolled through Facebook or Instagram and noticed a sponsored video or photo talking about a successful blogger and their masterclass? I see them constantly. Although some of them can be nothing more than an annoyance, you will occasionally find some serious value.

Especially if you are a beginner.

Don't be afraid to try one of these out, it's a great way to gain some valuable information for free.

FACEBOOK GROUPS:

Although not exactly a course, THE RIGHT (strong emphasis on the right) Facebook groups offer incredible mentoring, teamwork, and a benefits learning experience. When you have the opportunity to collaborate with some of the web's best bloggers, you should take advantage of it. These people know how to run a business, and they are offering you COMPLETELY FREE guidance along the way. I still suggest enrolling in some sort of in-depth course; however, if you can't even afford that OR want a mentor to help you put it together, you could completely try out Facebook groups.

You can signup for a free list of Facebook groups below.

WHY EDUCATING YOURSELF IS IMPORTANT

It's absolutely essential that you take classes to grow as a blogger. In fact, I try to take a new class every month; whether it be in blogging, freelance, or social media. This gives me a chance to grow and try new things. It's what made me go from 0 to nearly 50,000 page views a month. I recommend you do it too.